Like most EKU alumni, Crystal Wilkinson has fond memories of the "Campus Beautiful." But unlike many others, Wilkinson, who received a bachelor's degree in journalism from Eastern in 1985, is reliving those memories on a daily basis -- as EKU's writer-in-residence and a visiting English professor for the 2002-03 academic year.

It wasn't a walk down memory lane that Wilkinson had in mind when she resigned as assistant director of Lexington's Carnegie Center for Literacy and Learning. She had planned to spend this year on a nationwide publicity tour for her second book, "Water Street," published this month, and working on two upcoming novels.

But her alma mater called.

"When Dr. Bonnie Plummer (chair of EKU's Department of English and Theatre) and Dr. Deborah Core (associate chair of the Department) explained this position to me," Wilkinson said, "it seemed like a perfect fit.

"Teaching was something I was really going to miss," she added. " And I had been looking for a way to reconnect to Eastern. This was where it all really started for me. So it's like coming full circle."

Even her office in Case Annex is a reminder of the room a few floors away that she shared as a freshman.

Wilkinson's memories of coming to EKU as a scared 17-year-old Casey Countian serve her well in the classroom today.

"I can see a lot of my students relax when they realize that I really do understand where they're coming from," said Wilkinson, who will teach two classes during the fall semester and two in the spring. "I was one of the first in my family to go to college. I came from a small town. I have been where they are now."

In addition to her experience as an Eastern student, Wilkinson brings years of teaching creative writing for the Kentucky Governor's School for the Arts, the University of Kentucky and the Carnegie Center, and a solid career as an author to her role as writer-in-residence. Her first book, "Blackberries, Blackberries" (July 2000) was named Best Debut Fiction by Today's Librarian Magazine, and she received the 2002 Chaffin Award for Appalachian Literature. She is a charter member of the Affrilachian Poets, a group of performing African-American poets from the South.

Wilkinson also will be working for Eastern outside the classroom, serving as a goodwill ambassador during her ongoing book tour and helping to organize a new writer's group on campus.

"This group will be open to the entire campus," she said, "but we do hope to focus on
African-American writing with an Appalachian feel."

Eventually this group will meet every other week to discuss assigned writing samples; an organizational meeting is scheduled for 4:30 p.m., Sept. 12. For more information, contact Wilkinson at crystal.wilkinson@eku.edu or 859-622-3093.